Product description

A thrilling and moving novel about an extraordinary animal caught up in a very human war, for anyone who loved The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips or The Butterfly Lion...By the award-winning former Children's Laureate and author of War Horse. Dresden, 1945. Elizabeth and Karli's mother works at the zoo, where her favourite animal is a young elephant named Marlene. Then the zoo director tells her that the dangerous animals - including the elephants - must be shot before the town is bombed. Unable to give Marlene up, their mother moves her into the back garden to save her...and then the bombs start to fall. Their home destroyed, the whole family must flee the bombed-out city and through the perilous, snow-covered landscape, all the while avoiding the Russian troops who are drawing ever closer. It would be hard enough to do, without an elephant in tow...

Author information

Michael Morpurgo OBE is one of Britain's best-loved writers for children. He has written over 100 books and won many prizes, including the Smarties Prize, the Blue Peter Book Award and the Whitbread Award. His recent bestselling novels include 'Shadow', 'A Medal for Leroy' and 'Little Manfred'. His novel 'War Horse' has been successfully adapted as a West End and Broadway theatre play and a major film by Steven Spielberg. A former Children's Laureate, Michael is also the co-founder, with his wife Clare, of the charity Farms for City Children.

Review quote

Praise for An Elephant in the Garden "This is a handsome, very pickupable book. Brightly and informatively jacketed, its text punctuated by lovely, fluid ink and wash illustrations by Michael Foreman, it deserves a prominent place on school library bookshelves and, if there is any justice in the world, in bookshops." Guardian "A thrilling and moving new novel about an extraordinary animal caught up in a very human war, for anyone who loved The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips or The Butterfly Lion!" Waterstones "For readers aged eight and over, this captivating novel offers an insight into how Hitler came to power, refracted through the gaze of the young narrator." Telegraph "Following the stage success of War Horse, Michael Morpurgo returns with another gem in his animals in war series, An Elephant in the Garden." Telegraph